I would like to point out that "unlearned" or "uneducated" from the time of Christ was very different than the concepts today.
"Education" as it exists today in a metered form -- even theological -- was not truly available at that time. Most vocational trades were learned through apprenticeships (and often from family members). This is a "form" of education; but, students learned from their master (Luke 6:40).
There were no "schools" that taught fishing, carpentry, weaving, or even math (for collecting taxes). In fact, there weren't any "degrees" either. Children were taught how to read and write by parents and, whenever possible, synagogues (taught by rabbis). Most rabbis taught directly from the Scriptures, along with reading, writing, history, ethics and law, for the purpose of a moral education. However, such things were not mandatory or even common among all believers.
However, theology was a different thing altogether. People didn't typically "choose" to become educated in theology. Those who were "learned" as "Pharisees" were typically chosen (or inducted) from prominent families (or bright pupils from the synagogues) and were presented with what was understood to be a lifelong commitment.
Most children who attended synagogues throughout their childhood ended their education by the time they were involved in a trade or apprenticeship. This age varied according to the economic needs of the child or his family. A few...and very few...were able to continue their education into adulthood and were chosen to join sects.
There were different sects at the time with varying levels of learning commitment. Some sects, like the Essenes, literally separated their followers into a monastery-like priesthood environment. Scribes were also selected to lifelong commitments that resembled vocations in Law or script.
In the passage from Acts (Acts 4:13) mentioned in the first post, I take it to mean that the men who were confronting Peter and John were astonished because they weren't "educated" in the sense as they were (via committed sectarian education) -- yet they were very astute when it came to knowing the Scriptures well enough to "preach it" (Acts 4:8-12). This was, of course, under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit (Acts 4:8).
However, the apostles were obviously "educated" in the sense that they were able to read and write. Most of them held to particular trade vocations (fishing, carpentry, tax collectors, etc...).
I would like to inject that there was no Scriptural prohibition against education. The problem is when people become clones or slaves of a theology or ideology. In fact, you could argue that many churches (including their Sunday Schools) have become nothing more than indoctrination centers that present interpretations of doctrine rather than pure Scripture. Instead of focusing on the Word of God as a whole (like the early synagogues), they have focused on the list of "essential truths" as agreed upon and presented by the denomination or local group of pastors and board members.
I would also like to say that one of the most important things that you are taught by good professors at the modern university level is NOT to believe everything that you read or are told. Rather, you are pushed to make an effort to discover truth for yourself. Education is not about sitting in a classroom and regurgitating information that you are presented. It is about looking at what you are taught and then digging deeper to see if it is truth. While there is some recitation that you are tested over, much of a formal education lay in the realm of discovery.
This "search" for knowledge is reflected in the mottos of some of the oldest educational institutions in the United States. Harvard's motto is "Veritas" ("Truth") -- which happens to be the most common element in university mottos. Yale's motto is "Lux et veritas" ("Light and Truth"). Princeton's motto is "Dei sub numine viget" ("Under God's Power she Flourishes"). Dartmouth's motto is "Vox clamantis in deserto" ("A Voice of one crying out in the Wilderness"). Columbia University's motto is "In lumine Tuo videbimus lumen" ("In Thy Light shall we see the light"). Brown University's motto is "In Deo Speramus" ("In God We Hope"). Penn's motto is "Leges sine moribus vanae" ("Laws without morality are useless").
Sadly, most of these universities have rejected both their religious heritage and their encouragement to seek "truth." However, the best students are those who are willing to question what they are taught and diligently search for the truth of a matter. This is reflected in the Bereans' attitude when it came to the Apostle Paul (Acts 17:11).
Anyway, I hope that I didn't distract too much from the central theme of this discussion. I do agree that God doesn't need "theologians" who simply go to school, recite information that they are taught and then suppose that they "know God." As we all know, the essence of this life is to know Jesus Christ.
It doesn't take a degree in theology or a semester in a seminary to know God and introduce Him to others. It simply takes a person spending intimate and honest time with Him and His Word each and every day. It takes decreasing to the point that Christ -- in the truth and simplicity that even a child would long for -- is what people get from us when we share the Gospel.
